


The One with the SuperBowl Party

by writingramblr



Series: Avengers in the Big Apple [1]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Avengers as FRIENDS, Domestic Avengers, F/M, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-09
Updated: 2013-06-09
Packaged: 2017-12-14 09:27:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 12,431
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/835349
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/writingramblr/pseuds/writingramblr
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Part one finds our favorite characters preparing for the insane party Tony's trying to throw, and it doesn't help that Steve's got puppy eyes for Natalie.<br/>Will he work up the nerve to ask her out?<br/>Will Loki drive everyone including his brother nuts?<br/>Will Tony ever quite fighting with his landlady?<br/>Will Bruce pass out from smoking too much weed? (Unlikely)<br/>All these and more will be answered in this episode of 'Avengers.'</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Morning Grumblings

**Author's Note:**

> Read about their wacky misadventures, drunken parties, and how the bond of friendship keeps them all sane. Watch out for possible fluff, and lots of caffeine.
> 
> I have this posted on FFdotnet as well, and just thought I'd put it here, since I like this place better heh.  
> relevant tumblr post:  
> http://alykat86.tumblr.com/post/42258718165/see-look-avengers-friends-even-already-has  
> i would have the original prompt but i cannot find it D:  
> Enjoy the madness!

"Like the sun we will live to rise!" 

Steve cracked a blue eye open blearily, and looked over to where his bedroom door was very obviously wide open.

"What the hell man?" He groaned as the music finally stopped.

Clint peeked his light brown crew cut head around the door,

"Sorry 'bout that. Text alert ya know?"

"Geeze could you turn it down? I was asleep. It's my first day off in a week. You prolly woke up the science whizzes across the way." Steve rubbed a hand over his face, and combed his fingers through his messy blond hair.

Clint laughed,

"Unlikely. They're both probably out cold. Smoking weed does that to you." He glanced down; suddenly recalling his friend was still a cop, even on his off time.

Then his face brightened, 

"Oh hey it's from Nat. She wants to come over for breakfast. Is that okay with you? You're decent right?" Clint eyed him, and Steve coughed, embarrassed. He was wearing a plain white t shirt and red checkered boxers. Comfy sleepwear, but not attire for when a woman would be present.

He sat up quickly,

"Yeah sure. I'll change into something before I come out there. Could you just maybe turn the volume down? I may try to doze another few minutes."

Clint nodded,

"Yeah I'll put it on vibrate."

He left and snapped the door shut behind him.

Steve collapsed back into his bed.

He wished Natalie would text him.

***

Tony heard the sharp rapping on the door through the fog of sweet smoke and he grunted, reaching blindly for his cell phone.

"Snot Pepper izzit? Rentsalreadybeenmailed hassnit?" Bruce mumbled from his semi lotus position, as he exhaled a large cloud of smoke.

Tony grunted again in response and then lurched up out of his desk chair. He had fallen asleep after that forth joint at the worktable . . . Again. As he shuffled to the door, he just barely made out a mass of red curls that led down a black tank top clad back to a shapely jean covered bottom before the door across the hall opened, and the figure disappeared inside.

"Nope. Wasn't Pepper. The boys have company. Clint's woman."

Bruce hummed in acknowledgment. Natalie was an intelligent lady indeed, but still a damn fine one at the end of the day.

Tony shrugged and made his way over to where Bruce still sat, pondering just how hungry he was, and if it was worth moving for. He ran a hand through his dark hair, which showed a few streaks of premature graying at the temples. Not from the smoking though. Definitely not from the smoking.

"Hey. Why don't we go crash their party?" Bruce said after a moment of contemplative silence. Tony coughed on the smoke he'd been moments from swallowing,

"Are you nuts? As good as Bacon and Eggs sound, Steven would have our heads for smelling like pot so badly."

Bruce grinned,

"So go shower dummy. I'll go over first. Steve knows I have it for medical reasons."

Tony rolled his eyes,

"The medical reason you made up and he believed. Yeah. Good job ace." He stood up, slowly, as his head was starting to pound,

"Fine. Go ahead and I'll catch up. Make sure Natalie doesn't drink all the coffee."

Bruce nodded, reaching over to slip on his worn cotton purple shirt, buttoning it haphazardly.

"You are sooo high man." Tony said with a chuckle, as he watched Bruce become busied with simply matching buttons to their holes.

"Fuck you man. I got this." Eventually he managed to look semi dressed, with only a small amount of greying chest hair peeking over the edge of the shirt.

"See ya in a few." Tony called, and Bruce gave him a mock salute in return, striding out the door to stop in front of the apartment across the hall. He reached up, and gave a swift knock, that felt harder than it sounded. Hopefully they'd heard him.

***

By 8am sharp, Pepper Potts stood poised in front of her apartment door, clipboard and pen in hand, ready to begin the building walkthrough for the day. She was in her usual business casual, her favorite two-piece suit, consisting of a black pencil skirt, a white ruffled collar blouse, black jacket, and black kitten heeled shoes. Her long strawberry blond waves were clipped back from her face with a mock tortoise shell clip and she had put on a touch of light pink lipstick. She reached out for the door handle, when suddenly the theme song to "Government Issue" began emanating from her pocket. That was Phil's ringtone.

She pulled out the ringing blackberry and answered with a chipper, "Good Morning."

Phil was the star of Government Issue, a crime drama soap that followed the ups and downs of the love lives of several CIA agents. The most recent episode had been about Phil's character preventing a terrorist attack whilst fighting his feelings for the woman he was escorting through witness protection, along with her young son. Apparently it was part of a 4 episode arc that had achieved the highest viewer ratings and numbers of the entire season.

Pepper was a huge fan of the show and felt very honored that Phil Coulson chose her apartment building to reside in. He was her favorite tenet by far. The fact he was calling her could be good or bad. He wasn't a complainer, but sometimes the people on the floor above him got rowdy and he would call her to ask them to settle down.

But this was so early in the morning, they couldn't be causing trouble already could they? It was all that Stark man's fault. He acted like a teenager just out of high school sometimes. Who cared if he was a genius? He was downright annoying.

At least he was to her.

Back in the present, she listened with bated breath for what Phil would say.

"Miss Potts! Good morning to you as well. I was wondering if there was any way Central Perk delivered? I can't seem to find a number for to-go deliveries and I'm so engrossed in this next episode's script I don't want to leave my room."

Phil sounded so excited and so earnest, Pepper sighed internally, setting her clipboard down, and her bag, resigned to the fact she would be getting a late start on her work.

"Of course, I have the number right here. Someone else needed it the other day so I wrote it down just in case." That someone had been the troublesome pair of brothers on the 9th floor, whose constant stomping around sometimes gave her headaches, even though they were below her.

After she had hung up with Phil, she breathed a sigh of relief. He hadn't asked her what she thought of the latest episode, and she hadn't needed to pretend about it. It was still on her DVR, recorded from nearly 3 days ago. She'd been so busy she hadn't gotten around to watching it. All that she knew about it had been from reading the article on TV guide or from Natalie's excited babbling. 

She glanced down at her watch, 8:25am. Not too late. If she hurried, she could be finished with the door checks before noon.


	2. Group Breakfast

The smell of fresh brewed coffee seemed to find its way into Maria’s nostrils completely of its own accord. The scent emanated from across the hall and when she unconsciously inhaled deeply, she was awakened by the sound of a very loud and dramatic yawn from her roommate.  
She and her best friend Natalie shared a very small, but artsy apartment in the same building as many of their other friends. They had the misfortune of living across from some of the guys, but whenever they were noisy, the girls were usually at the source of the noise.  
She reluctantly pushed back the heavy covers, and looked up and about to see Natalie scrambling about for something more decent to wear than her current attire, what she classified as sleepwear, Maria considered more like Honeymoon lingerie. Thank goodness they had gotten over their short ‘bi-curious’ stage back in college, as Natalie looked quite delectable in the tiniest black lace camisole and boy shorts. Her red hair could use a brush though, as it looked quite tangled and full of rats nests in the curls.  
“Where are you going in such a hurry?” she managed to mumble out, her morning voice still a bit scratchy.   
Natalie looked over at her and explained,  
“Clint’s invited me down to breakfast. He said Steve’s making bacon and cheese eggs. You should come too. Get your butt up.” She tossed a pillow over, which Maria was still too sleepy to avoid.  
“Oof. Okay fine. Jeez. He better let me have some of that coffee that’s teasing my senses.” She frowned up at the ceiling, as if the glare would manage to pierce the floors between them and chastise Clint.  
***  
Loki stood over his sleeping brother, a dry paintbrush in hand, just inches from his brother’s face. He loved doing this. Waking his brother up like this may have been rather immature, but it was all in good fun.  
He slowly dragged the brush over Thor’s face, and when he saw him begin to stir, he ran for it.

“LOKI!” the sound of his brother’s thunderous voice made him burst out laughing.  
It had indeed been a success.  
“Yes brother?” he asked sweetly, with just a touch of innocence. He peered around the corner, to blink wide eyed at Thor, who was frowning.   
“You’ll get wrinkles if you keep that up.” He smirked, gesturing to Thor’s forehead.  
“Humph.” Thor grunted in reply, slowly and reluctantly getting out of bed, clad only in red plaid pajama pants that hung low on his hips.   
Loki raised his eyebrows,  
“Is that what you plan to wear to breakfast? The archer is cooking for any who are available.” Loki glanced meaningfully down at his own outfit, khaki slacks and a plain green polo shirt.  
Thor reached over and pulled out a pair of dark brown sweatpants from their bureau, and slipped a black t shirt on over his bare chest. He shucked off the plaid pajama pants, before kicking them aside to slip on the sweatpants.  
Loki raised his eyebrows,  
“How long have you been going ‘commando?’”  
Thor glared at him,  
“Shut up.”  
“I’m just saying . . . you might give someone a heart attack if you have to drop trou.”  
“And why would I need to do that?”  
Loki shrugged,  
“What if Steve demands a full body search?”  
Thor glanced at him,  
“Why would he do that?”  
“How would I know? Why does he always cook breakfast for himself and his roommate? I’m just saying.” Loki raised his hands in surrender, causing Thor to simply roll his eyes. He removed the sweatpants to pull on a pair of black boxer shorts before replacing the sweats.  
“There. Now, is that decent enough for you?” Thor demanded, and Loki nodded approvingly.  
“You’ll do. Now, I think we ought to bring something, so I’m brewing some of my favorite blend from Central Perk. You do remember they sell bags of their coffee right? You’re not so addicted to buying coffee readymade you’ve forgotten how good fresh brewed coffee tastes?” A single black eyebrow arched in question, daring his brother to argue.   
Thor harrumphed again and then nodded.  
“I do remember brother. Let’s go soon, I’m starving.”  
***  
Steve answered the sharp rap on his and Clint’s apartment door, finding the lovely and enigmatic Natalie standing impatiently in the hall.  
He felt himself blush, then he quickly stepped aside,  
“Please, come in.” he ducked his head and gulped as she eyed him up and down.  
“You feeling okay Captain? Or should I say officer?” she chuckled.   
Natalie couldn’t be sure, but through the golden tan on Steve’s face, it almost looked as if he was reddening in embarrassment. She glanced down to make sure she didn’t have her busty tank top on, and she was good. It was a sporty one, which was rather high cut. She knew her way of dressing sometimes made the guys uncomfortable, but then again, it was probably due to the fact she knew most of them a lot better than their own mothers did. Except for Steve. He was the only one she hadn’t had a past relationship, or even one night stand with. She’d assumed for the longest time he was gay.  
Clint was more like a brother to her, even though they’d had a fun time in college. The man in question soon bounded over to her from where a pan full of delicious smells had begun to make her feel the hunger in her stomach.  
“How’s it been? Had a good weekend?” she inquired, and she barely caught the mumbled,  
“I’m actually off today . . . so it’s just ‘Steve.’” From behind her, while Clint began talking about the latest technological advancement in weaponized bow’s that Tony had been sharing with him.  
She wasn’t Tony’s biggest fan, but the man had a certain charm, and was always entertaining to be around, so she put up with his occasional techno babble. Being a Russian Literature major had meant she hadn’t been in many advanced Science or Technology classes, so most of what the guys talked about went over her and Maria’s head.  
Speaking of Maria . . .   
***  
Maria found herself in the uncomfortable position of waiting outside the elevator with the two Brothers of their group. Not that Thor was any trouble; it was his brother Loki, the mischief maker. He seemed determined to annoy her during her every waking moment. For instance, as they waited, he began humming a monotonous tune, whilst poking her occasionally, yet always insisting it was Thor.  
Eventually, she was moments from smacking him, when suddenly the elevator dinged, announcing its arrival to their floor.  
She and Natalie lived across from the brothers, and they all lived a couple floors above their other friends; Tony Stark, heir to a billion or so dollar corporation his father ran, (who roomed with his best friend and fellow scientist, and sometimes stoner), Bruce Banner, and then Nat’s closest guy friend; Clint Barton, a former marine, and his roommate, Steve Rogers, a kind police officer (who had a soft spot for Nat). Maria could see it, but her own friend couldn’t, or likely, wouldn’t even notice.   
The trio rode down the few floors to where the breakfast party was, and after disembarking, Loki could be seen rubbing a sore spot on his arm, which may or may not have been caused by Maria. She looked the complete picture of girlish innocence, but everyone knew, once you crossed her, you’d be in a world of pain anyway.  
***  
Luckily, as Loki grimaced in mock pain, the spunky brunette had smacked the arm that had not been clutching the carafe of hot strong coffee. Else wise he might have been in serious trouble, as it could have slopped onto his brother. He winced for real that time, imagining Thor’s retaliation.   
The rest of the crew called greetings, and Clint grinned broadly when he saw what the silver carafe contained.  
“Drinks all around!” Clint bellowed, and with a mock salute, Steve began pouring mugs of hot coffee and glasses of ice cold Orange Juice.   
The eggs and bacon were plated and passed around, and finally the roaring beasts in everyone’s stomachs had been tamed.  
“So what’s on the agenda for today gang?” Piped up Tony’s voice, slightly garbled from a mouthful of egg, causing Bruce and Natalie to chuckle at his terrible table manners. Tony wrinkled his nose at them both in mock insult.  
He sounded like he was addressing the kids on Scooby-Doo or something.  
Steve quickly swallowed the sip of coffee he had just taken, feeling the buzz of caffeine as it began to make his senses more alert.  
“Perhaps we could all plan to watch the superbowl tonight?” he looked around hopefully, and then blushed for the second time in as many hours.  
Tony smirked,  
“Don’t be silly. Of course. I’m throwing a huge party in my dad’s fancy high rise, didn’t you remember? I emailed everyone about it a week ago. I meant what else are we planning to do today. Here have a look.” He pulled out his blackberry, scrolled through something for a moment, before triumphantly thrusting the device in Steve’s face,  
“See? Did you not get this?” Clint reached out, gently moving Tony’s hand away,  
“My boy here doesn’t have a fancy gadget like yours yet. I’m still trying to convince him to upgrade.” At this he leaned forward, with a mock whisper he declared,  
“Steve still has a flip-phone. . .”  
Natalie let out a mock gasp of horror, and the rest of the friends couldn’t contain a smile at the very least at Steve’s expense.   
The technologically impaired man in question sat back in his chair and rolled his eyes,  
“I’m sorry, I just can’t see how you can justify spending upwards of a month’s car insurance on a little hunk of metal and plastic that’s just going to absorb all my free time.” He shrugged.  
Maria remained silent, but she agreed with him. She had only caved and gotten a smartphone when Natalie offered to let her in on her shared plan with Thor and Loki. They were all on a family plan, despite the girls not being related to the brothers.  
It did give them a great deal on monthly payments.  
Bruce took a huge bite of eggs, washing it down with a gulp of orange juice that had both the girls cringing at his lack of manners,  
“I think if he likes it, and it works for him, why should he give in to the Man? Keep your easy phone man. It’s what works for you.” He leaned back, and looked as if he wished he could be smoking a joint, so sadly did he look at his empty hand.  
Tony coughed, hiding a laugh, and reached over to clap Bruce hard on the back.  
“You know what? You’re right. If our strong man of the law doesn’t need modern tech, so be it. But thank God the rest of New York doesn’t feel the same, or we’d be out of a job! Well guys, it’s time we say our goodbyes, I’ve gotta do a bit of real work before the party tonight.”  
Steve did his best to not look overjoyed at the statement and nodded politely as the two scientific geniuses said their farewells and retreated back across the hall to their cave of tech.


	3. Not A Date

Natalie stood quickly after the two had gone, eager to help clean up as it meant avoiding Steve’s eager stare.  
He hadn’t said a single word to her since letting her in. It was unnerving. Maria’s pathetic eyeing of the completely oblivious Bruce was also kind of annoying. What was it, horny best friend week or something?  
As she helped rinse off the pans and started scrubbing them, Clint slowly and casually made his way over, hands laden with dirty coffee mugs.  
“What’s up with them?” she hissed, referring to the Brothers, who, despite their usual banter that morning, had been relatively quiet.  
“I heard through Steve that their dad had a heart attack, and Loki, well, he’s coping with it differently than Thor. He’s been getting on his nerves. Maybe Maria could take him out, distract him a bit.”  
Natalie stared at her friend in astonishment,  
“Are you saying we should send Maria out on a . . . date or something with Loki to keep him from bugging his brother? That’s crazy. They hate each other.” She glanced over to see Maria trying to finish her eggs and her coffee, while Loki was trying to expertly slingshot his own breakfast towards her via his fork.  
Thor just looked a bit lost, after Tony had gone, the merriment had left his handsome face. His long blond hair that had been in a messy ponytail had begun to fall out, and framed his face, making him look rather like a sad angel.  
Clint’s reply was a mere shrug that seemed to say, ‘What’s the worst that could happen?’  
Natalie answered with a sigh, and slumping of her shoulders. She turned to Maria,  
“Hey is there any chance you could drop off ‘Anna Karina’ and ‘Doctor Zivago’ for me? I think they’re due next week but I know I’ll forget.” Maria arched a brown eyebrow in question, the obvious one, ‘Why can’t you return your own depressing Russian novels?’  
‘Trust me.’ Natalie’s returning smile said.  
Maria shrugged in response, and she missed the bit of egg that flew towards her neck, and when it slipped down the front of her cropped navy sweater, she swore out loud.  
“Maria Hill! Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?” Loki asked teasingly, and Maria bit her lip to keep from cursing again.  
Instead, she found herself asking the one thing that she never could have dreamt of,  
“Loki, why don’t you come with me to the library? Perhaps you’ll find someone else to torture. Or maybe you’ll learn something from a book. You can read can’t you?” she smirked at him, finally having responded with a decent comeback.  
Loki’s mouth fell open, and then formed a grin,  
“Touché my dear. Touché.”  
***  
For the second time that day, a loud knocking startled Tony from his musings and mumblings. He had been working on some very complicated calculations for the Earth friendly engine his father had been designing.  
He didn’t move an inch,  
“Bruce! Get in here.”   
A rather dazed scientist peered around the corner of Tony’s office, from where he had been lounging on the couch, clearly smoking again.  
“God. Can’t you make yourself useful or do you plan to be high all day and not write a single shred of code?”   
Bruce grunted in reply.  
“I do what I fucking want. My head hurts, thus, the weed.” He held up the joint in defiance, and then frowned as the knocking resumed.  
“Answer that. Make it stop. Please.” Tony gave him a sad puppy dog look, and Bruce rolled his eyes lazily.  
“Fine. You know it’s your girlfriend though.”  
Bruce disappeared back towards the kitchen and ambled his way to the front door.  
Tony let his head drop onto his desk in frustration. He was a genius, therefore, he knew for certain the current noisemaker at their front door was indeed their landlord Pepper Potts, come to check on them, to assure they were still alive and indeed, were able to pay rent.  
He could have sworn he mailed her the rent from the past month already, but it seemed he had in fact, not.  
“Miss Potts, delightful to see you as always.” Bruce’s sarcasm was a bit too obvious, and when he made no further comment, it was clear he had been stabbed with a typical Potts glare.  
“Glad to see you are contributing to society, by remaining in a constant state of oblivion Mister Banner.” Came her snarky reply.  
A moment of silence reigned before the inevitable . . .  
“Mister Stark!” Pepper’s angry voice called, and Tony sighed from where he was still collapsed on his desk.  
He quickly stood and made his way out to the living room.  
Pepper stood, ramrod straight, holding her clipboard as if it was a raft in an ocean, and he had to bite back a rude comment about where she had found such a large stick to be placed up her butt.  
“Yes Ma’am?” he inquired politely as possible.  
Pepper frowned, small wrinkles forming above her strawberry blond brows,  
“Mister Stark, I have not received the month’s rent. I hope you have a decent excuse for your lack of funds, considering your very well off parentage.”  
She tried to maintain her fierce façade, but internally, she was becoming rather lightheaded, from either the fact that Tony Stark was still in his sleepwear, revealing quite a large amount of his bare muscled chest, or from the large amount of Bruce’s pot smoke in the air, possibly a combination of the two.  
Sensing the tension in the room, Bruce took a large drag on his joint, and promptly walked back towards Tony’s office, in his typical fashion of deserting a battlefield that he knew he had no stake in.  
Tony smiled tightly,   
“I assure you Miss Potts. I did mail the rent check. I am not lacking in funds that is a fact.” The business like attire of their landlord seemed rather formal considering he and Bruce still remained in the pajamas. He realized the reason he was beginning to get a chill was not from the demeanor of Pepper, but from the fact he was wearing a button up shirt . . . unbuttoned.  
He raised his eyebrows at her as he noticed her gaze drift below his face. It only strayed to his chest for a moment before rising back up to his eyes.  
“Mister Stark. If you indeed are not lacking in funds, as you put it, then you can easily write me a check for the rent, within the next 24 hours.” She gave a small huff of impatience and he could have sworn her fierce expression faltered for a moment.  
He grinned, turning on the Stark charm,  
“Of course. I can write it for you this instant. No need to wait a day. The postal service can be rather incompetent. If you’ll wait here . . .” at this, he made his way quickly back into his office, where he glared at Bruce, who shrugged.  
“She’s certainly pissed off at you. I thought you mailed the rent last week?”  
Tony frowned,  
“I know. I thought so as well, in fact, I know I wrote the check because I record every purchase I ever make in here.” He pushed some papers on his desk around, revealing his navy checkbook. He flipped through it quickly and was happy to find the entry for the rent check. But where was the check?  
He glanced around the room and suddenly had a revelation.  
“Bruce. Get up.”   
The roommate in question muttered under his breath, but did as Tony asked.  
The instant Tony’s chair was empty; he let out a sigh of relief.  
“There it is. It must have slipped off my desk and I’ve been sitting on it all morning.”  
Bruce started laughing and Tony felt like his face was on fire.  
“I better go deliver it before she kicks us out. I’m surprised she hasn’t reported us for your stupid weed yet.”  
Bruce was still in a fit of giggles, so Tony left him in a heap on the floor, and walked back out to find Pepper angrily punching keys on her blackberry.  
“Careful now, those things are expensive to replace. Here’s the rent. If you’re free tonight, dad’s throwing a big Superbowl party.” He grinned at her.  
“Thank you Mister Stark, it appears you can stay another month. And no, thank you. I don’t socialize with my tenants. Good day.”  
She strode out the door and slammed it behind her. Not exactly the professional exit Tony had been anticipating. She had almost looked pained when she had turned him down. He hadn’t exactly known where the idea to invite her to the party had come from. She just seemed so lonely. All she had were her daily chores of checking up on and maintaining the building. She wouldn’t be such a fiery ice queen if she would just loosen up and have some fun. Or get laid.


	4. Like an Old Married Couple

Phil paced his apartment, muttering under his breath to himself as his eyes moved over the script for the next shooting. He was glad he had gotten the chance to talk to Pepper. She hadn’t said what she thought of yesterday’s episode though. He frowned. Perhaps she had hated it!  
He let out a frustrated sigh. Acting was not always fun and games like the world seemed to think. He worried sometimes about what the critics would think, even though it was just a soap. He lived for it. He gave it his all. This role was the role of a lifetime.  
He heard a door slam in the distance, most likely a floor below him, and set the papers down. Staying holed up in his apartment all day wasn’t going to do him any good. He knew the scene backward and forwards and staring at it for another hour wouldn’t make him feel any better.   
It was past time for breakfast, so he decided to go grab lunch at his favorite café, Central Perk.  
His best friend Nick Fury owned the place, and was always glad for a little extra business, when surely on the day of the Superbowl, people would be planning to go to a bar to party, not to a coffee shop.  
***  
Maria climbed out of the bright yellow taxicab, not bothering to hold the door for Loki, whom she knew should have been the one to get the door for her, not vice versa.  
She held the two books Natalie had entrusted her with, and she groaned internally as she heard Loki come up beside her.  
“Can you try not to cause trouble? And be sure to remember silence is golden. This is a library.”  
She glanced at him, and was relieved to see he wasn’t arguing.  
“No problem. But you need to promise to at least pretend we’re not on a date. Otherwise this whole thing is gross. Like your best friend setting me up with you. Too cliché.”  
Loki smirked at her.   
Maria couldn’t resist rolling her eyes,   
“Trust me. That’ll be a piece of cake. You are the last person I would want to go out with.”  
They were now in the main atrium of the building, and Loki’s voice fell to a whisper,  
“Who’s the first?”  
Maria dropped the books gently into the return slot near the check out desk and tried not to blush.  
“No one you would know.”  
Loki eyed her curiously,  
“Oh? Nothing I might be able to do to help? Give the guy in question a push in the right direction?”  
She shook her head rapidly.  
“No. I don’t want help. I don’t need it. Things will happen if they’re meant to.”  
Loki scoffed aloud, and she smacked his shoulder, causing him to give a mock wince and gasp of agony.  
“That’s bull and you know it. All that fate and destiny crap. Life’s what you make it. Take for instance Thor. He’s being very dramatic about dad. But he’s fine! All better. In fact, he said he’s going to start working out more now, to prevent that kind of thing happening again. But all Thor thinks is that he’s going to get himself in trouble. Get caught out in the middle of the track at the gym and collapse again or something. So negative. He needs to get laid.” Loki finished with a thoughtful look.  
Maria pursed her lips in confusion.  
“You chock his concern, and a legitimate one at that, up to the fact he needs to get laid? You’re a terrible brother.”  
Loki sighed,  
“I know. Looking out for my own brother’s sexual welfare. How terrible of me.” He tsked at her.  
“You seem awful wound up yourself Maria. Perhaps you’re suffering from the same illness?”  
Maria raised an eyebrow at him,  
“Illness? I feel fine.”  
“I-need-to-get-laid-straight-away-itis.”  
Another smack on the shoulder was her reply.  
***  
Steve stood back from them, watching the way they interacted. It was so easy, so normal. Like they were two parts of a well oiled machine. They were only doing dishes, yet they acted a lot like a married couple who knew each other like their own hands.  
Maybe that wasn’t actually the best analogy. . . .  
He hoped Natalie wouldn’t notice that he rushed through resetting the table to its usual makeshift desk layout.  
He didn’t want to be around them. He wanted the chance to talk to her himself, but his roommate was simply her best friend, and perhaps they were meant to be.  
Clint’s hand on his shoulder brought him out of his clouded thoughts.  
“What was that? Sorry. I didn’t get nearly enough coffee.”  
Clint grinned at him,  
“No problem. Nat and I are going to Central Perk, to brainstorm what to bring to Tony’s party tonight. Wanna come and get your caffeine fix? It’s almost lunchtime anyway, maybe we can all just have a few artisan sandwiches or some shit like that.”  
Steve glanced over to see Natalie pulling on her dark red hoodie over her low cut black tank top, thank goodness for that, as it was rather distracting. She had no idea the effect she had on him.  
“Okay. Sure.”  
Natalie looked up from straightening out the jacket, and caught his stare,  
“You didn’t get enough coffee Cap? Two enormous cups of Joe? Oh, but then again, I forget, you cops love your coffee.” She smirked at him, and ran her fingers through her red curls, ruffling them to give them that ‘Just been thoroughly fucked’ look.   
At least that’s what Steve classified it as. If only.   
“Are you kids done arguing? Let’s go. I’m driving.”  
Clint yanked Natalie’s hand away from her hair, and pulled her towards the door, reaching up to the hook by the door for the keys.  
Steve gulped and quickly followed the pair.


	5. CINNAMON ROLLS

“Yeah dad, I got about six friends coming . . . No they won’t be bringing anything, except maybe Clint and Steve . . . No they’re not gay, they just love cooking. I mean, Steve could be gay . . . I know, they’re nuts, horrible bachelors . . . who knows? Yeah. Okay. See ya then. Bye pop.”  
Tony ended the call and tossed his phone on his bed. Mattress on the floor would be a more precise term. Though he and Bruce had enough money to live in high rises, technically he wouldn’t see much more than one percent until he inherited his father’s company. So for now, they lived like hippy hobos. Tony flicked the latest folder with the schematics for Clint’s advanced bow he had been browsing shut, and stood up, stretching his back, hearing the cracks and pops as his aching joints flexed.  
“It’s party time man! I’ve done enough work for a Friday afternoon.”  
Bruce grunted in reply from the other room, and Tony walked out to find him pondering something on his overlarge touch screen phone. It was practically a small computer, yet somehow managed to still fit in Bruce’s pants pocket.  
“What is it now?” Tony’s voice held a lone drop of curiosity, like the first raindrop before a storm.  
Bruce glanced up at him, his eyes clear for the first time in a while, and the air of the apartment seemed a bit less dense,  
“You won’t believe what idiots are gonna be on the halftime show. Swedish House Mafia had to cancel and they got---“   
Tony tuned out as Bruce started babbling. He couldn’t give a flying fuck who performed at the halftime show; he had nearly five thousand dollars riding on his team.  
“Yeah that’s a shame. I guess we’ll have to get the DJ to play something great during that at the party instead.”  
He rubbed his face, grimacing at the amount of growth he found. It was time to shower and shave, at nearly one pm, he figured he’d been lazy long enough.  
“You mind if I go first?” He eyed Bruce, who gave a defeated shrug,  
“You go ahead.”  
“You will shower after I’m done. You cannot come to a party at Stark Tower looking like that.”  
“Like what?”  
“Like you just fell through the roof of a dumpster trunk.”  
Bruce glanced up and frowned,  
“What?”  
“You stink of pot, and you are a mess. Maybe you should go first. Wait. No. you might take all the hot water.”  
Tony gestured in his general direction, and then walked away, calling back,  
“There will be hot chicks there tonight. It’s a night to suit up.”  
Bruce rolled his eyes, and would have made a retort, but his phone dinged. He glanced down at it, and called to Tony,  
“We’re going to go meet the gang at Central Perk for a bite before your silly party.”

From in the shower, under the hot water pounding on his shoulders, Tony groaned before replying,  
“It’s not silly. I assure you. And fine. Only if I can bring something to put in my coffee. They never make it strong enough for me.”  
Mostly his muttering and mumbling went unnoticed, but Bruce had the sixth sense to know he would have made some sort of response, and he called back,  
“Whatever you say boss.”  
***  
Thor was simply moping about on the couch in the wide living room, staring off into space, when he received the text summoning him to join the others at Central Perk.  
He sighed. It had been several hours since the magnificent breakfast Clint and Steve had made for them all, and his stomach had begun to growl like an angry housecat. Or perhaps that was just Heimdall. He and Loki had recently found the black cat while out strolling around the city, and he had just followed them home. Adopted them in a way.  
The cat in question had indeed strolled into the living room, and spotting Thor, raced over to leap into his lap, mewling and rubbing on Thor arm, asking for some attention.  
Thor absentmindedly began stroking him behind his ears, and the black cat purred loudly in response, snuggling closer.  
“Why do you always know how to make me feel better? Loki was right; you were just what we needed.” He managed a smile at the happy feline, and then sighed again, reluctantly disentangling himself from Heimdall.  
“I should go. Loki will be angry if I stay here until the party tonight. Stay out of trouble. Guard the house well.”  
Thor grabbed his keys and threw on a light jacket, striding out the door and towards the elevator, finally pulling out his phone to type a response.  
THERE BETTER BE CINNAMON ROLLS WHEN I ARRIVE.  
***  
Loki chuckled at his brothers responding text. He glanced around to see where Maria had gotten to, and noticed a lovely creature watching him from across the library.  
At first glance, one would not notice her beauty; they might even dare to think she was plain. Soft mousy brown hair, framing a heart shaped face laden with warm brown eyes and a sweet smile. This was what Loki saw.   
He walked purposefully over to her desk, meeting her gaze boldly.  
“May I ask your name? I am Loki.” He stuck out his hand, and she nervously took it, giving it a meager shake.  
“Um. I’m Jane. Can I help you?”  
He glanced down to see the title sitting on her desk, “REFERENCE DESK.”  
He smiled at her, shaking his head,  
“No. I am not in need of any assistance. I merely wanted to ascertain why someone like you is in here? This place is so dreadfully boring.” He glanced around again, tsking at the lack of activity and also again wondering where on earth Maria had gone.  
He looked back to find the glorious creature frowning at him. The expression on her made her merely look more intriguing.  
“Excuse me sir? Boring? I think the word you are looking for is Quiet. A place of learning, of studying. Of bettering oneself. I suppose you think you have nothing more to learn? That you are the pinnacle of human achievement?”   
“Hmm . . .” He thought to himself, “This one has a bit of fire hidden under that shy exterior.”  
Loki smirked and cheekily replied,  
“Never would I claim such high absolutes. I am always willing to learn something new. If you were to be my teacher.”  
Jane’s eyes narrowed,  
“I’m sure you would. Now, if you don’t mind, I have to get back to work. Have a good day, sir.” The emphasis she placed on the final word felt like a slap on the face to Loki.  
He nodded respectfully, and backed away slowly, not wishing to further get on this brunette’s bad side.  
He felt someone nudge an elbow into his ribs and he turned to find Maria glaring at him,  
“You ready to go or what? Natalie texted me. We’re going to meet the gang at—“  
“Central Perk, yes I know. I texted my brother.”


	6. A Stray Bet

“Aaah. This is the life. Coffee and all the lovely hipster art the eye can manage.” Clint leaned back into the worn leather couch, throwing his arm casually over Natalie’s shoulder, who lounged beside him, clutching a cup of iced caramel coffee, while the small table in front of them contained half eaten egg salad sandwiches.  
“I guess so. If you like art.” Natalie raised an eyebrow at his arm move, but she didn’t say anything.  
Steve, who sat on her other side, merely took another large bite of his own turkey with mustard on rye, trying not to be jealous of how bold Clint was. Or how comfortable Natalie was with his boldness.  
The chime above the door sounded, and they all glanced over to see Tony, clad in a dark grey suit with a silver bow tie, and Bruce, wearing an equally nice pair of black pants and a black blazer over a dark plume silk shirt, no tie.  
“Oh well don’t you boys look fancy.” Natalie sneered, and Tony winked at her.  
“That’s the point. This party tonight, I am the host, if you’ll recall.”  
“Oh my memory’s just fine. I’m not the one who smokes a pound of weed a week.” She gave Bruce a pointed look, and he merely shrugged.  
“What can I say? It keeps me calm. All those dumb equations frustrate me too much if I don’t smoke.”  
He plopped down in a brown leather armoire and told Tony to bring him his drink.  
Tony lowered his sunglasses, then pulled them off, and tossed them in Bruce’s lap.  
“Fine. But you’re buying.”  
Bruce glanced over to where the trio sat,  
“Did you not invite your roommate Natalie?”  
Natalie was surprised he was asking after Maria. She would naturally have been thrilled to know it, as she held a bit of a flame for the mellow scientist.  
“Nah I bet she’ll be here. She did have to escort Loki around the library so . . .” she trailed off, and Bruce nodded in understanding.  
***  
The front door barely had time to chime before it was thrown open, and Thor strode in, a frown clouding his broad forehead, but as soon as he saw his friends, it lessened slightly.  
“Friends! Where has my little brother gotten to? He told me we were to meet here.”  
Natalie grinned at the sight of the tall blond haired Viking sized man, and leaping up from the couch, pulled him into a bear hug.  
Clint tried not to pout, and Steve merely raised his eyebrows in surprise at such exuberance. Perhaps Natalie liked Tony’s consulting Astronomy genius.  
She pulled away and gestured over to the other leather couch, and as Thor sat down, he took up nearly the entire piece of furniture.  
He did glance over at the door a few times before letting Natalie and Bruce engage him in conversation.  
“We heard about your father, but Loki says he is doing better. The doctors are amazed.”  
Thor nodded solemnly,  
“I know. It is true. But I still think he could have spent another day in recovery. He’s rather impatient about some things. Can’t stand to be away from his work for too long.”   
Thor and Loki’s father was the current manager of an enormous metal manufacturing corporation that worked along with Stark Industries. Their specialty was iron ore and other metal alloys. They, along with Howard Stark, Tony’s father, were trying to replicate a rare metal called ‘Vibranium,’ of which a small deposit had been found in New Mexico, whilst drilling for oil.   
Tony raved about it, calling it the next step in safer and stronger buildings in areas prone to earthquakes. It absorbed all vibrations and impacts, making it a natural substance to be used in construction.   
However, the current cost of using it was outweighing its benefits, thus, Thor and Loki’s father had been working overtime trying to find a way to copy it or create it from cheaper materials. It was during a late night at work he had had the heart attack. The boys were both glad their father had such passion for his work, but they worried about his constant striving for perfection, at his own life’s expense.  
Tony didn’t have the same concern for his own father. Howard Stark had always been unaware of his son’s genius until very recently. Tony, along with Bruce’s help, had designed a new motor that cut auto emissions in half, and had the potential to become 100% self sustaining over the course of a year of use.  
Finally, Howard had seen the light, literally and figuratively. The Superbowl party that night may have been for a trivial event, but it also symbolized a celebration of Tony’s own genius and true potential to be a great businessman after his father passed on.  
***  
“Stay calm. The party has arrived.”  
As soon as the chime sounded and Maria stepped inside the coffee shop, Loki sprung past her to jump on the couch beside his brother, smacking him on the arm,  
“Did you miss me? I had a glorious time at the library, or as I was informed, the ‘golden place of learning and discovery.’” He smirked at Thor, who only looked confused, as Tony walked by, handing him a cup of steaming coffee and a large cinnamon roll on a small ceramic plate.  
“Thank you Tony.” Thor said with a smile.  
Loki raised a dark eyebrow,   
“Did you read my phone Stark? Or are you now psychic?”  
Tony shrugged,  
“Nope. You’re just late. Your brother already gave us his order, and I must say, it’s not the healthiest of lunches, but, what can I say, he’s got a good eye. Those buns look delicious.” Tony’s eyes were on Natalie as he spoke, and nowhere near Thor’s snack.  
She rolled her eyes, and moved so that Clint could return to holding her with one arm,  
“Thanks but I think these buns are off limits, and not for sale.”  
“Someday you’ll come to the dark side. I know it.” Tony winked at her and then quickly tore into his own late lunch, a grilled chicken sandwich.  
Maria looked around the room, seeing everyone with food, and sighed heavily,  
“I guess being late means missing out on the fresh goods.”  
Bruce stifled a snort, and took a sip of coffee instead of commenting.  
Maria noticed his reaction, and blushed. She hadn’t realized how ridiculously naughty that had sounded on the heels of Tony’s comment.  
“I’m gonna get some coffee . . .” she muttered, leaving the group to go get in line.  
Loki stared off into space, not exactly in her direction, but at the baristas behind the counter.  
“I could work here. I could do that. Couldn’t I brother?”  
Thor and Clint both laughed,  
“Why on earth would you resort to such a low income job? You could work at Stark Industries at the drop of a hat. Just ask me.” Thor said, mirth finally bringing his face to its full degree of handsomeness.   
Loki shrugged,  
“I don’t want to end up working for you, or with you. No offense.”   
“But you would work for Nick Fury?” Tony asked pointedly, gesturing to the tall dark man behind the counter, overseeing the barista making Maria’s drink.  
“Mmm now that you mention it . . . yes. I could handle him. He’s all bark and no bite.”  
Natalie scoffed,  
“You know he fires nearly 60% of the people who apply. He has crazy high standards for coffee brewing. I don’t think you would last a month.”  
The prankster pinned her with a stare,  
“Wanna bet?”   
Natalie sat up slightly, straightening her shoulders, leaning forward to match his gaze,  
“Oh yeah. Next week, you apply, and see just how long you last. 50 bucks says you make it one week. Any takers?” she glanced around at the others, and lingered her gaze on Tony, who couldn’t resist grinning. He loved bets. Especially if there was something in it for him.  
“Sure. You’re on. If you’re right, I’ll double that to 100 bucks. If you’re wrong, you’ve got to work as me and Bruce’s housekeeper for a month.”  
Natalie sat back,  
“When did this suddenly turn into your idea of a great porno?”  
Tony smirked and shrugged,  
“When you decided to include me in the bet.”  
Loki held up his hands,  
“Wait. What if I do make it past a week, or past a month? What do I get?”  
Tony looked over at him, slightly exasperated,  
“What do you want?”  
Thor, who was barely containing his laughter at the entire spectacle, clapped a hand on Loki’s shoulder,  
“Perhaps you should stop now while you’re ahead. You haven’t got 100 dollars to pay if you lose.”   
Loki frowned, and pointed a finger at Natalie,  
“Don’t worry. It’s on. If I win, besides working for Tony and Bruce, you’ll get me that pretty librarian’s phone number the next time you go get some Russian spy novel. Deal?” he stuck out his entire right hand and Natalie glanced at it for only a second before taking it, crushing it in an iron grip.  
“You got it. Deal.”  
***  
Phil sipped on his Chai latte in complete silence, enjoying the spectacle of the large group of friends sitting around the main area of the café. He sat secluded at the makeshift bar, on the left of the counter and the bakery display. When he saw Nick Fury, one of his oldest friends, emerge from the back, he waved, and the large black man walked over, a grin spreading over his serious face.  
“Look who it is! My favorite TV star. How are you man?”  
Nick clapped a large hand on Phil’s back, startling him slightly, but he grinned right back.  
“It’s going. Shooting three whole episodes this week. And be sure to watch for the clip tonight during the Superbowl, cost nearly 3 million for 50 seconds. Talk about crazy. I hope it’s worth it.” Phil face became solemn again, and Nick frowned.

“It may just be a soap, but it’s your life. I’m sure it’ll be great.”  
Phil looked skeptical,  
“I guess. You’d think that all my work on TV would get me some recognition, but you see those people, they’re having a good time, but I bet they don’t know me from Adam.” He sighed, and tried to pull his gaze away from Maria, who was currently laughing at a joke Thor had told. She was stunning.  
Nick chuckled,  
“Phil, my man, you know mostly lonely housewives watch your show, hoping you’ll be the next knock on the door, leading them off to adventures and romance. Those kids are barely out of college. Cut ‘em some slack.”  
“I know. It’s just, I’m not that much older than them. I could be cool again. They all live in my building too. I could ask Pepper to introduce me . . .” he trailed off, seeing Nick’s expression.  
“Boy. You must be desperate if you’re going to ask that woman for help with friends, much less dating advice.”   
Nick could see the way Phil was watching the lively brunette across the room, and though she looked pretty green, there was no reason Phil couldn’t have the guts to talk to her himself, without involving a third party.  
Phil gulped the cold dregs of his latte down, and stood abruptly,  
“You’re right Nick. I don’t need help. I can be cool. I can make friends. I’m a CIA agent for goodness sake. Or at least I play one on TV.” He grinned at Nick and thanked him for the drink, before striding purposefully toward the large group.  
“Good luck man.” Nick muttered under his breath, his prayers with his faux spy friend.  
***  
Pepper’s cell phone trilled, just as she was making her last rounds.  
“Yes. This is Pepper.” She answered it curtly, and then relaxed as she heard the voice on the other end.  
“Brr. Don’t you have my number anymore? We just talked 10 hours ago did we not?”

She giggled, a very un-Pepper thing to do.  
“Yes Phil I still have your number. I’m sorry it’s just been a crazy morning. Nearly three apartments are having trouble with their cable, and five others are having trouble with WIFI connectivity. How’s your day been?”  
Suddenly Phil went silent, and then he coughed nervously,  
“Umm well the thing is . . . I got a girl’s number! And she recognized me from ‘Government Issue!’” he sounded as excited as a kid on Christmas.  
Pepper smiled,  
“That’s wonderful! Who is she? Where’d you meet her?” she was all ears. Phil had been single and alone for way too long for someone of his nature.  
“Actually, we met at Central Perk. She was there with a bunch of her friends.”  
Pepper frowned suddenly, hoping against hope the girl in question wasn’t who she thought it was.  
“Oh? What’s she look like?”  
“Pepper, she’s the loveliest girl I’ve ever dared to speak to. Her name is Maria. She’s got wavy dark brown hair, pretty blue eyes, and when she smiles . . .” he sighed happily, unable to go on.  
She felt her shoulders relax slightly, unaware how much she had been tensed up.  
“Maria. She’s a good one. Always pays her rent on time. Never a mess. Never a complaint. Her roommate however . . . is another story. I’m just glad it wasn’t her.”   
Phil laughed on the line,  
“Who? The red head? Oh she’s very taken. At least it seems like it. I’m not sure which guy she’s dating, but it seems like at least a couple of them are certain it’s the other.”  
Pepper refrained from making a snide comment. She and Phil chatted a little longer, before she realized she had walked past the elevator.  
“I gotta go, paperwork beckons. Make sure to wait a day or so before you call her okay? And be careful.”  
She snapped her phone shut, and punched the “Up” button, shaking her head slightly, it seemed as if everyone in the whole darn building had something to be happy about, all she had to look forward to that night was a nice glass of chilled rose.  
***  
Phil didn’t get a chance to inform Pepper that he had no need to wait a day to contact Maria for a date, as he had been invited to Tony’s Superbowl party, which nearly everyone in the group was attending.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That Bet may come up again...just fair warning.


	7. Arriving at the Party

“You’ve officially become the coolest person I know. Asked out by a famous actor. I hate you.”  
Maria looked up from the mirror where she was carefully applying a small coat of rarely worn mascara.  
“Thanks. That’s sisterhood for you. Besides, you’ve got like three guys after you. You cannot complain to me.”  
Natalie shrugged, adjusting her red silk bra, edged with black lace,  
“True. But I don’t really like any of them. Except maybe Tony. He’s just got such a large ego; it gets in the way of his good looks. And money. If I lose this bet, I will promise you he’ll probably try and seduce me. Or even skip the niceties and try and take me over his desk. He’s just that kind of guy.”  
“Casanova you mean. Why don’t you like Steve? He’s so nice. And he adores you. The poor guy has this look, as if you stepped on his dog, or cat, every time you let Clint snuggle you.”  
Natalie groaned,  
“Clint and I are best friends. So we touch. Steve needs to get over it. He’s too nice. It’s weird.” She resumed fixing her bra, and tried to keep a straight face. Truth was, nice was good. Different. Steve made it clear he wanted to go out with her, but at least he wasn’t pushy, or dirty about it.  
Maria stepped back, and turned to her friend,  
“How does it look? Not too heavy?”   
Natalie grinned at her,  
“This is a party remember? No such thing as too much makeup. If ya got it, flaunt it. You know Tony’s going to have bimbos on each arm. So we’ve got to look up to par. Here, come here, try this lipstick shade.”  
Natalie was an expert with makeup, and the dark coral shade she suggested for Maria was beyond perfect.   
Her blue eyes were lined with dark pewter liner, smudged with dark navy to make slight wings at the edge. She was stunning.  
Natalie had gone for the classic vamp look with pure black eyeliner and mascara, with ruby red lipstick that surprisingly didn’t clash with her hair.  
“We’re hot bitches. Let’s go party!”  
They giggled as they left the apartment, and all their cares behind.  
***  
Tony adjusted his silver bowtie, and then frowned,   
“Stop it. You know how you’re always mumbling about negative energy and karma? Well I can feel it rolling off you in waves. So cut it out. Have a joint.”  
Bruce chuckled.  
“I swear. I’ve not seen you this nervous since . . . well maybe ever. It’s just a party. Unless you invited Pepper . . .”  
Tony gulped.  
“What makes you say that? I had to invite everyone we know in the building, lest I seem snobbish or anything. Dad wouldn’t approve of that.”  
Bruce rolled his eyes,  
“You did. Did Phil insist on it? He seems like too nice of a guy. If he’s friends with her, then he’s a saint.”  
Tony shrugged, defiant in his decision,  
“She just needs to loosen up and have a little fun. This party provides that. Perhaps she can even be helped out by Nat and Maria.”  
Bruce held up his hands in surrender,  
“It’s your funeral. And hang on a second, what was up with that nonsense of the bet? We don’t need a housekeeper.”   
Tony stepped back from the mirror, and grinned broadly,  
“Don’t you think I know that? I just want to see Nat in a French maid outfit. Which is what she’s going to have to wear when she loses.”  
Bruce couldn’t argue with that.  
***  
Thor stood by the bar, uncertain if he would find a reason to leave it. There were several large flat screen TV’s above the shelves that held the numerous bottles of liquor, and he was able to observe the game easily. No need to socialize. That was his brother’s area of expertise.  
He stood slumped over the counter, slowly nursing a large glass of golden beer, surely putting wrinkles in his powder blue tux. Tony had insisted that all the guys dress nicely for the party, he said that girls dug men in suits.  
Thor knew that he had been getting looks from around the room, but he wasn’t exactly looking for a girl to chat with either. That was, until Natalie swept over to his side, all smoky eyed and black mini dress clad.  
“Hey big boy. What’s the matter? You look so serious. This is a party you know. A Stark party. Fun is practically a requirement.” She tried to get him to smile, but he could only manage half a grimace.  
“I’m sorry Natalie. I guess I’m just not in the party mood. But Loki wouldn’t let me stay home.”  
Natalie nodded.  
“I heard about your father. I’m sorry. But Loki did say he was stable, and even better than that, trying to work from home.” She gave his broad shoulders that much she could reach, a reassuring squeeze, and then morphed back into her party mood. “So, are you going to buy me a drink or what?”  
Thor couldn’t help it. She was too cheerful. He finally cracked,   
“Of course. For such a lovely woman as you, I would buy the whole bar. But I think Tony’s paying for the drinks tonight.” He had whispered the last bit into her left ear, and she giggled, very un-Natalie-esc of her.


	8. Drinks All Around

Across the room, Loki saw his brother chatting with the fiery red head and politely ended his conversation with the Host of the party, to make his way over to the bar.  
“Brother! I see you are enjoying yourself. What are we drinking?”  
He threw a smile Natalie’s way, and was rewarded with a smack on the back from Thor.  
“Welcome to our party. As you can see, Natalie has brought a bit of sunshine in with her, and we’re drinking whatever we please. In fact, I need to order something for my lady.” He gazed at her appreciatively for a moment, before asking the bartender for a Vodka Cranberry.  
Natalie raised her eyebrows in surprise,  
“How did you remember that? It’s my favorite drink.”  
Loki tapped his forehead,  
“I told him, telepathically.”  
“Oh yeah. Sure.” She patted him on the shoulder, marveling at the fact he was nearly three inches taller than his own toweringly tall brother.  
“Ah Maria. How are you doing?”  
Natalie turned to see her counterpart sidling up to the bar, and she brushed off Loki’s greeting like a stray fly.  
“I’m fine thank you. I need to talk to you Natalie . . . ASAP.”  
“Whoo boy. Girl talk. I guess we better skedaddle.” Loki smirked to Thor, who shook his head.  
“Nonsense. I was here first. They can go over there and come back when they’re done.”  
Natalie was too concerned about what had Maria agitated to take mock offense.  
“Of course. We’ll be back, don’t you worry.”  
She smacked Loki’s arm again and then patted Thor’s more gently, taking Maria to the far side of the room.  
“What’s going on?” she asked in a fierce whisper.  
“Bruce is here. With some idiot from Tony’s office.” Maria looked near tears, and Natalie was stunned to see how much she seemed to care for the mellow scientist.  
“Oh honey. I’m sure it’s nothing. It’s a party. He’s never mentioned her. I’m sure they’re just talking, or something. Besides, didn’t you invite Phil Coulson, the Soap star to this thing? Go find him, and forget about Bruce.” She waved a hand around flippantly.  
Maria nodded, doing her best to stay composed.  
“Okay, you’re right. He’s a good distraction.”  
Natalie nodded,  
“Plus, you can’t cry. You’ll mess up your makeup.”  
“This is why I don’t wear makeup!” Maria hiccupped.  
“Don’t worry. I can always fix it if need be. As much as I hate to do it, I’ll talk to Tony for you. Find out what’s going on. Maybe I can even get Bruce’s number for you. Would that cheer you up? For god’s sake, it’s the Superbowl. Have a drink. Talk to Phil. Tell Loki to be nice to you or else I’ll break his arm.”  
Natalie gave Maria a gentle shove back towards the bar, and she took off to where she had last seen Tony, surrounded by busty blondes.  
***  
Pepper walked in rather timidly, with Phil on her arm. She had worn a sky blue dress, and left her strawberry blond waves falling freely down her back. She felt very exposed. She never dressed like this. Her two piece suits and black pumps always made her feel confident. In this backless dress, she felt as if she was in high school again, looking around the room at prom to see only strangers.   
Phil gave her arm a gentle squeeze, before turning to whisper,  
“Don’t look so worried. You look lovely. Tony’s right over by the bar, er no, now he’s talking with someone. But go say hello. I see Maria, and she looks lonely.”  
Phil tried to hide his blush. He was glad to see Maria hadn’t simply invited him to be nice; she appeared to be on the lookout for him.  
Phil let go of Pepper, and watched as she made her way towards Tony, albeit very slowly.  
He moved across the room to Maria, and when he crossed her line of sight she smiled briefly, before sending a pained glance after her red haired friend.   
Phil only knew her name from hearing Pepper mention it, but he figured it would be a decent segue into a conversation.  
He ordered a Tom Collins from the bartender, and turned to lean against it, watching Maria before speaking,  
“Did you send your friend away or were you hoping she would come back to rescue you?”  
Maria blushed,  
“No. I sent her away so she couldn’t eavesdrop. She has a habit of doing that.”  
She turned to face him, and he lost his train of thought momentarily at the sight of her cobalt blue eyes staring directly at him.  
Phil gulped,  
“Really? Well that’s just her way of being protective I suppose.” With his general lack of anything brilliant to say, the conversation was suddenly going downhill. This shouldn’t be! He was a famous actor, he could be witty, dramatic, and even romantic. At least on the show.  
Maria sipped her own drink silently, and didn’t try to hide the fact she was staring pathetically across the room at Bruce, who stood huddled in conversation with Tony.   
It appeared Natalie had passed the message along already.  
She whirled around to face Phil, who now clutched his own drink.  
“So, ah, what’s a typical day for you?”  
Phil smiled around the rim of his glass,  
“It’s boring. I doubt you would want to hear about it. How about you? What do you do?”  
Maria flushed, and took a large sip of her drink, delaying as long as she could.  
“I’m currently unemployed, but always looking.”  
Phil smiled sympathetically, but it was for this reason Maria suddenly turned into an ice queen. She assumed he was feeling sorry for her, and was prepared to walk away until he spoke, his hand shooting out to gently brush her elbow,  
“Please, don’t think I’m being a bleeding heart. I understand it’s a tough market. I could talk to Nick for you if you’d like. He could always use some help in Central Perk.”  
Maria shook her head, though her smile did return, in full force and wattage,  
“Thank you, but no. I prefer to make my own way, I don’t want charity. I’ll find something someday. It was nice meeting you Mister Coulson.” She stuck out her hand, and he took it, glad to find it was not as icy cold as he had expected,  
“My pleasure. Enjoy the rest of your evening Maria.”  
She had decided to swallow the biting comment asking him to lose her number; she knew he didn’t deserve that. He couldn’t help it. He was just a nice guy.  
Phil watched her leave the bar and walk over to chat with her red haired friend, sighing in defeat.  
There were plenty of pretty girls at the party, there was bound to be one who was a fan of the show.  
**  
Bruce found himself wishing he had brought his bag of joints. This party was so boring, loud, and way too fancy. He hated dressing up. His dumb best friend was really annoying sometimes. The girl who was currently talking to him was way too blond and tan. Not his type at all. He preferred pale skinned, tall brunettes. Like Maria.   
He hated to admit it, but she would be almost better than a joint right now. He looked around the room, not even bothering to pretend to listen to the bimbo in front of him.  
Within half a minute he had spotted her. She stood by the bar, talking with Thor and Loki, looking like a blue angel. He knew Natalie had likely helped her with her outfit, as she was the fashionista. The dark blue dress stopped about half a foot above her knees, showing off her gorgeous legs, and silver stripes led up to and over the bust, forming the straps. She looked stunning. Her dark hair was loose and looked as if she had just been thoroughly ravished, and then ran her fingers through it. She was chatting with a man in an expensively tailored suit, who had a kind face. Bruce had seen the man come in with Pepper, so it was most likely the elusive Phil Coulson, the celebrity of their apartment building.  
“Excuse me.” he muttered, brushing past the blond, intent on making his way towards the bar, but suddenly Tony stepped in his path.  
“Hey man, what’s up, get out of my way, I need a drink.” He managed to get out, but Tony gripped his arm, and pulled him off to the side.  
“What?”  
“Listen. Natalie just told me something you might want to hear. And I gave her your number.”  
Bruce looked confused.  
“What?”  
“You heard me.”  
Bruce had a snarky retort on the tip of his tongue, but suddenly he caught renewed sight of Pepper, and nudged Tony’s arm.  
“Your girlfriend’s over there. You better go say hello. I can talk to Maria by myself thank you very much.”  
Tony frowned at him, but was unable to find a pithy remark to reply, and before he knew it Bruce was halfway across the room reaching out to shake Maria’s hand.   
“That’s how he greets girls? No wonder he’s such a failure with them.” Tony thought to himself, before considering running to the exit as Pepper caught sight of him and began walking towards him.   
He couldn’t deny she looked very pretty, and most certainly should dress that way more often.  
***  
Steve shuffled in slowly, and only moved out of the doorway when Clint elbowed him in the ribs.  
“Ouch! Sheesh.”  
“Move. I’m growing old here. And I need a drink.”

Clint ran a hand through his dark blond hair, glancing about the room until he spotted Natalie and Tony at the bar.  
“Hey guys. What’s good around here?”  
Natalie smiled broadly as she met his eyes.  
“Finally! What took you guys so long anyway?”

Clint rolled his eyes, jerking his thumb to where Steve still slouched by the front entrance, watching the entire room like a cat in a room full of rocking chairs.

Natalie pouted,

“The poor dear. He doesn’t get out enough does he? I’ll take him a drink.” She called for a coke and Jack, and winked at Tony, leaving him staring at Clint in bewilderment.

“What’s gotten into her? She’s suddenly trying to help out Captain-Can’t-Talk-To-Anyone-Outside the Friend Circle?”

Clint shrugged, and downed his Guinness, raising his hand for another.

Steve was considering going over to chat with Bruce, but he thought the vibe the scientist and Maria were putting off meant ‘leave us alone.’ So he didn’t move an inch.

Before could give up and just join Clint at the bar, he felt a tap on his shoulder, and he turned to see Natalie, holding out a chilled glass to him.

“Thank you . . . what is it?”

He sniffed it carefully, and recognized the whiskey, but was unsure of the other sweet aroma.

She smiled, 

“It’s a Jack and Coke. Two great drinks even better together.”   
She raised her vodka cranberry to clink his glass,  
“To the winning team.”

Steve’s bright blue eyes met her green ones over the edge of his tumbler as he took a sip.

As the sweetness of the soda ran over his tongue and the slow burn of the whiskey hit his throat, he finally felt himself relax.

“So how’ve you been? Er. Since lunch that is.”

It had only been about six hours or so since he had seen her, but suddenly it seemed as if his train of thought was completely scrambled.

Natalie shrugged, and took another sip of her drink. Her gaze traveled over him, admiring the way his dress shirt was pulled tight over his arm and chest muscles. The Captain did keep pretty fit.  
“How is work? Still cleaning up the streets of the big city?”

Steve raised his eyebrows,  
“I do try. I mostly catch speeders and jaywalkers. Nothing terribly exciting.” He sipped his drink slower, as he could feel the buzz of the alcohol racing through him, bringing a strange warmth to his head.  
She grinned at him,  
“Oh I can imagine. It must get pretty scary, trying to stop all those fools from crossing the street against green lights.” She narrowed her eyes at him, giving him a mock serious stare.

Steve gulped. She looked so beautiful, in the smallest black dress, eyes dark and smoldering, and her pouty lips red as sin.  
He wished he was better spoken, and had the same smooth way of talking as Tony. Or even the comfortable friendship that had once gone deeper, like she did with Clint.  
“Um. So. Is there any chance you’re not doing anything tomorrow? I get off patrol early. Around four. We could go grab coffee? Or just go to the library?”  
He shuffled his feet slightly, and exhaled slowly, waiting for the rejection.

Natalie tilted her head, her red curls falling across her shoulder,  
“Steve. Are you asking me out?”  
He coughed.  
“Not really. Just wondering if two friends could hang out away from the group. Can I have your number? That way we could coordinate times and locations.”  
She smiled,  
“Of course you can have my number Steve. I’m surprised you didn’t ask sooner.” She held out her hand, and he stared at it.

She wiggled her fingers,  
“Your phone Steve?”

He pulled out the slim silver flip phone out of his front left jeans pocket, placing it tentatively in her palm.  
She glanced at it, flipping it open deftly with her thumb,  
“You know, I don’t know if I can manage something this old . . . .” she watched his face, and when he looked as if he might protest, she giggled.  
“Kidding! Okay I just texted myself. Now I have your number and you have mine. Text me whenever you get off and I’ll tell you what I’m in the mood for.”  
Steve gulped, and nodded, graciously accepting the phone when she handed it back.  
“Now, I’ve got to go see what the score is. I cannot have my boys losing.”  
She strolled away, and he had to fight to keep from dropping his gaze to stare at her curvy bottom.  
***

 

The rest of the night was a boozy, hazy blur.  
The next day the gang ended up googling who won the Game.


End file.
